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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. pit — a hole
  3. spring — a coil
  4. court — of a king
  5. saw — the tool
  6. stem — to come from
  7. degree — an amount
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — a hint
  10. cue — for pool
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. squash — the sport
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. degree — temperature
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. pit — in a race
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. squash — to crush
  19. saw — the tool
  20. spring — of water
  21. court — for sport
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. degree — from a university
  24. court — of law

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com